Friday, July 8, 2016

THE COMEY REPORT

The air waves, the Internet and the blogesphere are swamped
with commentary and speculation about the seemingly contradictory public
statement made by FBI Director James Comey concerning the investigation of
Hillary Clinton’s emails.

I will try my hand at offering an explanation. Let’s start
with the Constitution. The Fifth Amendment of the Bill of Rights specifies
that:

NO PERSON SHALL BE HELD TO ANSWER FOR A CAPITAL, OR
OTHERWISE INFAMOUS CRIME, UNLESS ON A PRESENTMENT OR INDICTMENT OF A GRAND JURY

A grand jury is an assemblage of between sixteen and
twenty-three citizens called to determine whether a crime has been committed
and who probably did it. It is not an adversary proceeding. There is no
defendant, nor defense counsel. The prosecutor is in charge. There are no rules
of evidence. Hearsay and rumor can be considered. The Grand Jury can subpoena
witnesses and force them to testify. It can punish for contempt or perjury.

A grand Jury meets in secret. Jurors, witnesses and counsel are
sworn not to disclose what they see and hear in the sessions. If the Grand Jury
does not find that a crime has been committed, they return “no bill” and that
is the end of it.

If the Grand Jury finds that a crime has been committed and
that there is probable cause to believe that a certain person committed it,
they return a bill of indictment, which authorizes the prosecutor to proceed
with a criminal case against that person.

An indictment by a Grand Jury requires twelve votes. If the
jury consists of sixteen, that represents a 75% majority. If it is a jury of
23, the 12 votes would be a bare majority.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency within the
office of the Attorney General of the United States. Its function is to
investigate possible criminal activity, identify those responsible, and seek
their prosecution and conviction. It functions essentially as a police
department for the federal government.

FBI investigations are not normally revealed to the public
unless there is some perceived need for public cooperation. This is for the
same reason that Grand Jury deliberations are carried on behind closed doors.
If nothing criminal is found, the damage to reputations and careers based on
rumor or insinuation is unconscionable.

In the case of the Clinton email investigation, however, the
matter first came to the FBI at the request of the Inspector General of the
Intelligence Community, who in turn was prodded by a Congressional committee
investigating the Benghazi attack.

Because it came to his desk in a politically charged up
atmosphere, Director Comey determined that extraordinary transparency was
needed. This was his reason for calling a press conference instead of simply
writing a letter to the Justice Department.

James Comey is a very successful lawyer. In a career of over
30 years as at the Bar, he has held a number of positions in government and
business, steadily moving up the ladder of importance and responsibility, and
has built a solid reputation as an independent, principled, responsible
professional.

Director Comey understands that in government as in
business, the name of the game is to justify the decision to hire you.It isn’t just a matter of pleasing your
superiors – although there is surely much of that – it is also a matter of
doing what is objectively good for the organization.

Comey could have sent the Clinton email file to the Attorney
General without comment, and left Loretta Lynch to explain why she didn’t call
for a Grand Jury. He didn’t. He went out on a limb to include a gratuitous bit
of advice to the effect that “no reasonable prosecutor” would pursue the
matter.

Candidly, I think it’s a tempest in a tea pot. No Grand Jury
of 16 or 23 citizens drawn from Washington D.C. or New York is likely to return
an indictment of the Democratic Party’s candidate for President just three
months before the election.

So now, Hillary’s case has been referred to the Court of
Public Opinion. Hear Ye, Hear Ye. The People’s Court is now in session.

4 comments:

My own theory re why Hilary used a private email server, which is 100% speculative, is that she wanted to remain a viable potential presidential candidate, and she knew that her paper trail as Secretary of State certainly would be combed through for actual or exaggerated or even made-up dirt. (Stanwill's gratuitous and fringo remark about Comey fearing assassination goes right to my point.) I think the Clintons were limiting the down side to a limited scandal of their own creation (using a private server) vs God-knows-what might potentially dreamed up from the actual email record. I think they figure she can best this just as Bill best the trumped-up sex/peachment thing. So using private email server was the prudent thing for Hilary to do. Assuming she will be President, she and Bill will look back and credit her victory to serving as Secretary of State without exposing herself to certain exaggerated and made-up email"scandals."

Your honor, it was good to meet and talk with you yesterday! I found this about Jack Nicklaus: http://www.cbssports.com/golf/news/jack-nicklaus-endorses-donald-trump-for-president/It looks like they might have resolved their earlier differences. Regards, Mark

Your honor, great to meet and talk with you yesterday. Found this about J. Nicklaus: http://www.cbssports.com/golf/news/jack-nicklaus-endorses-donald-trump-for-president/It appears that they may have resolved their earlier differences. Regards, MDA

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